Real NEastate: Pennswood Park pricing issue

Q: My agent wants me to reduce the price of my home in Pennswood Park. It’s been on the market for eight months and I’ve had 11 buyers see it. I want $239,000 but he says that the market is “rejecting” that price. What is that supposed to mean? I want what I want.

A:  Nearly 15 percent to 25 percent of all listings do not sell. The market rejects them. Buyers did not accept the price, condition, location, or marketing effort, or a combination of these areas, or perhaps all four of them.

It’s ok to want to get top dollar for your house. Everyone does. But market value is determined by what homebuyers are willing to pay, not what sellers are asking. You may want what you want, but that doesn’t necessarily mean a buyer will agree to pay what you want.

Eight months is considered a long time on the market in Pennswood Park. This is an area where the average time on the market is actually under five months.

The average sold price in Pennswood Park is about 15 percent lower than what you’re asking. Therefore, coupled with the length of time you’ve been on the market with no takers, your home is overpriced for the market. The smart thing would be to adjust the price.

But that’s only if you are able to sell it at a lower price, otherwise maybe you should stay where you are and wait a couple more years until home prices increase more.

Stacey McCarthy is a real estate agent with the McCarthy Group of Keller Williams. Her Real NEastate column appears every Wednesday on NEastPhilly.com. See others here. Read other NEast Philly columns here.